Friday, February 22, 2013

Mike Schmidt knows what he’s talking about! (reads his take on Michael Young/HOF…strike button at ready)

“I sort of ride the fence on that whole steroid era issue,” Schmidt said. “I don’t have a definite opinion like some of my fellow Hall of Famers. Some of the guys were very, very adamant about a person being associated with steroids: ‘They’ll never be in the Hall of Fame. If they are, I’ll never come back.’ I’ve heard that from some of my fellow members, and I think that’s absolutely ridiculous.”

Schmidt, in camp until March 20 as a special instructor, said he is concerned about players such as Mike Piazza and Craig Biggio being “lumped in with guys who have a stronger relationship with the PED issue.”

“If a guy played and had great numbers in his generation, ask yourself if he was involved,” Schmidt said. “It’s just too bad. I think time will cure that. I really do think Biggio and Piazza will eventually become Hall of Famers.

“The guys who failed tests or the facts show or they admitted they were involved with PED use, that’s one thing. But to assume a guy did because his teammate did or he has a big neck or a big head or there was a spike in his numbers, to assume that is not right.”

...On Young: “Michael Young could retire tomorrow, and he would be a strong candidate for the Hall of Fame. He’s probably two Michael Young years away from being a first-ballot Hall of Famer. I don’t know what his career hitting numbers are, but he’s a little like Derek Jeter. Is he not? If he played in New York, imagine what people would be saying about Michael Young’s career. Somebody would have mentioned the Hall of Fame a long time ago.”

Reader Comments and Retorts

Statements posted here are those of our readers and do not represent the BaseballThinkFactory. Names are provided by the poster and are not verified. We ask that posters follow our submission policy. Please report any inappropriate comments.

I'll say it again. Schmidt is a breath of fresh air compared with most of his HOF contemporaries. And regarding Young, I'd rather listen to a guy like Schmidt argue for HOF worthiness over almost any sportswriter.

I'll say it again. Schmidt is a breath of fresh air compared with most of his HOF contemporaries.

I'd say compared to just about anyone I've seen or heard on the subject.

Schmidt, in camp until March 20 as a special instructor, said he is concerned about players such as Mike Piazza and Craig Biggio being “lumped in with guys who have a stronger relationship with the PED issue.”

“If a guy played and had great numbers in his generation, ask yourself if he was involved,” Schmidt said. “It’s just too bad. I think time will cure that. I really do think Biggio and Piazza will eventually become Hall of Famers.

“The guys who failed tests or the facts show or they admitted they were involved with PED use, that’s one thing. But to assume a guy did because his teammate did or he has a big neck or a big head or there was a spike in his numbers, to assume that is not right.”

And he'd be by far the worst hitter in the club. 2 more Michael Young years and a limp to 3000 at best maintains his 104 OPS+. More likely it drops a few points. The current worst in the club is Lou Brock at 109.

Two more "Michael Young" years would give him 2600 hits, with a chance to limp to 3000. That's his only path to Cooperstown.

I'd be amazed if he made it, even with 3,000 hits. Same with Adam Dunn if Dunn gets to 500 HRs (or 550, or maybe even 600). There are players who bring so little else to the table that even getting to the treasured milestones won't get them in.

Man, that guy's been on durable mofo. Over 8000 PA in essentially 12 seasons. Over the last 11 seasons, he's averaged 156 games played.

If, by some miracle, Young had 5 more seasons like his 2008 (not a good season for him), he would finish with over 3100 hits, 1500 runs, nearly 1400 RBI and 11,500 PA. And, assuming he does not transform back into an average-ish SS, about 27 WAR. I think he might actually make it with those numbers.

As to Dunn ... Kingman. But, in theory, he could get to 600 HR by the end of his age 37 season. He could limp up to 650+. That's kinda fun to think about.

By the way, per b-r, Dunn has now had a distinctly below-average career. He's at -6 WAA. Since 2005, he's got 1.3 WAR. Even if you zeroed out his Rfield, he'd be average. We make fun of Juan Pierre for being better than him.

I did, not quite a double take, but a take and a half when I looked at Young's BBRef page earlier and remembered how consistently he's in the lineup. 1800+ games by age 35, and he didn't have his first full season in the majors until he was 25. Texas had Royce Clayton until then, Clayton was still decent, and while I have no recollection at all about whether Young was being held back, his minor league career has a normal-looking trajectory. I suppose a team with a suppurating wound in the IF might have gotten him up a year earlier, though.

Wow--you're right about the RBIs. I wouldn't have guessed he might end up with that many.

Putting aside the current PED voting controversy, I don't think the HoF is going to turn away members of the 3,000 hit club anytime soon, unless they reached 3,000 in manner that was far "worse" than those who previously hit the mark. Even then, a hypothetical Mr. Consistency who hit .275 with 150 hits every year for 20 years could argue that he did it the hard way.

Young is not going to limp to 3,000 hits any more than Damon did or some think Pierre might. He still needs 770 and he hasn't totaled that in his past four seasons. He is not going to get better over the next four years, he will get worse and miss more playing time due to age and injury. It's highly unlikely he will even play four more seasons let alone the five or six or seven he would need to "limp" to 3,000.